File.



PATENTED OCT. 3, '1905. A. E. LANDON n W. F. BECKl PILE.

APPLICATION HLED SEPT. e, 1904.

WITNESSES:

UNITED sTATEs PATENT OEEIOE.

ASA ELTON LANDON, OF HANTON, PENNSYLVANIA, AND NVARREN F. BECK, OFELMlRA, NENV YORK.

FILE.

Specication of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct. 8, 1905.

Application filed September 6, 1904. Serial No. 223,338.

Be it known that we, ASA ELTON LANDON, residing at Canton, in the countyof Bradford and State of Pennsylvania, and lVAmiEN F. BECK, residing atElmira, in the county of Ohemung and State of New York, citizens of theUnited States, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inFiles, of which the following is a specification.

Our invention relates more particularly to improvements in files such asare adapted to re ceive and preserve the sales-slips used by nierchantsin transacting business with their customers; and the principal objectof our improvements is to provide a [ile of this nature which shall beespecially adapted to be used in combination with sales-slips printedwith a form such as is described in the Letters Patent to farren F. Beckfor forms for sales-slips, No. 788,346, dated April 25, 1905, and inwhich said slips may be arranged with each customers slips in acompartment by themselves in alphabetical order and with a certainportion of the outermost slip in each compartment displayed so as toshow certain data thereon, which at a glance will give to the merchant acomplete statement of the condition of each A further object is to soarrange the file that the compartments will be of a flexible nature inOrder that each compartment may receive a number of the slips and toprovide means for retaining the slips within the compartment so thatthey may not become disarranged no mattei' in what position the file maybe placed while handling it, and our final object is to provide a simpleand cheaply-constructed file for this purpose of a form and shapesuitable for convenient handling` and for placing away within a safe,vault, or other place of safe-keeping.

We attain our objects by means of a filingcase arranged and constructedin the manner illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which- Figurel represents a plan View of one leaf of a filing-case embodying ourimprovements with a second leaf hinged thereto at the righthand side andshown in longitudinal section, and Fig. 2 represents a transversesection of the same on line :e :1; of Fig. l.

For the purpose of illustrating our invention we have shown afiling-case composed of two leaves A A, hinged together, each leaf beingin the form of a rectangular tray and containing` two rows of tencompartments each, so that the sales-slips for forty customers may bereceived and filed therein. lt will bc evident, however, that each leafmay be made of a size to contain a larger number of compartments andthat the compartments may be made of different sizes to conform with thesize and shape of the sales-slips in use by any given merchant; also,that the capacity of the file may be increased by employing a largernumber of leaves, which may be hinged or fastened together in anydesirable manner.

The leaves A A are shallow rectangular trays formed of wood or othermaterial of suitable lightness and strength and are hinged together atpoints B, so as to form in, edect, a book from which may be read whenthe sales-slips are in place the whole history of the customers accountsas represented by the slips. Running longitudinally through the centerof each leaf is a channel-piece O, composed of sheet metal or othersuitable material bent into the desired shape, and in the longitudinaldivisions formed thereby are arranged a series of overlapping flexibleflaps D, each flap projecting a short distance beyond the nextoverlapping flap and forming a compartment in which may be placed thesales-slips of any given customer as they are made out from time to timein the course of business transactions. These Haps are preferably cutfrom cartridge paper, although any other material of suitableiiexibility may be used, and they are bent into the shape shown in thelongitudinal section of the right-hand leaf in A Fig. l-that is, eachflap will have a short back strip E, by which it is fastened to the backof the leaf, and an outwardly-projecting bend F, which constitutes thebottom of each compartment and provides for the necessary capacity ofthe compartments to receive a package of the sales-slips. By giving tothe compartments a flat bottom each slip as it is placed in acompartment will fall into line with the underlying slips and will notbe forced up as the compartments lill so as to obstruct theview of theslips in the compartment next above. As the iaps are flexible, aconsiderable number of sales-slips may be placed in each compartment andthe flaps will bend over and lie down closely upon said slips, so thatit will be evident that the compartr ments may contain some more andsome less of the slips, and yet all will be pressed closely together tohold the slips in place when our securing-rods Gr `are turned down overthe face of the iiaps.

rlhe rods G are of stiii` wire bent into the form oi' bails, hinged tothe leaves A at the points H by means otl outturned projections from theends of the hails, beingslipped into corresponding holes 'formed in thetop and bottom sides of the leaves. In order to hold these bails Jfromturning and to press them upon the iiaps, we provide i'lat springs at I,fastened at one end J to the back ot the leal? and left free at theother end. l `hese springs are of suiiicient length to allow the bailsto be thrown over into the channel C and to hold the bails in thatposition. XVhen the bails are thrown over into the central channel, thetiling-compartmen ts are left open and free for the insertion or removalot' the sales-slips. To facilitate the removal of the slips, we providenotches at K at the top or' each flap in order that a finger may be morereadily inserted beneath the slips to draw them from between the flaps.

At L is a filling-in piece which throws out the back of the uppercompartments into line `with the other compartments, and this pieceYWill be preferably covered with cartridge-paper, which is brought downat M to overlap `the back strip E ot' the next lower flap.

At N and O are shown sales-slips as they will appear when in place inthe lile, and it will be seen that the portions of the slips Whichappear above the overlying flaps disclose not only the names of thecustomers, but also the dates when the slips were made ont, the amountof a customers account brought forward from his next previous slip, thefooting of the items of the slip, and the total of the said two items,which total is the amount then due and payable from the customer. Incase the customer makes a payment on account his slip for thattransaction will show a credit, and the amount entered on the slip willbe deducted from the amount brought forward, as shown on the slip O. Bythis arrangement of the {ile in conjunction with the above-describedform oi' sales-slips it will be seen that we provide not only anetiective and compact lile for the slips, but also a iile by means ofwhich the merchant can utilize his sales-slips for the purpose ofconducting his bookkeeping. Each customers account will be shown on theportion ot' the slip which s exposed in the iiies and can be read in thesame manner as if it were entered upon a separate book. i Itis ourintention that only a few )f the slips shall be retained for each cus-;omer -in the compartments of this file, the slips of earlier date beingremoved from time '.o time and either destroyed or put away by hemselvesin suitable receptacles for future eference.

Vhile we have described a bail as constituting the securing device forholding the fiaps and slips in place within the iiles, we do not coniineourselves to the use of the bails nor to any particular means ofaccomplishing this result, n'or do we wish to be limited to the form ofspring which we have illustrated for holding the bail in place, as itwill be obvious to those skilled in the art that other devices andarrangements of springs may be utilized to accomplish the same purpose.Neither do werestrict ourselves to the use of this tile in connectionwith sales-slips only, as it may be used to advantage in filing awayother papers.

Having thus described our improvements, what we claim as our invention,and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

l. A file comprising a receptacle containing a plurality of expansibletiling-compartments arranged in series, said compartments being of equaldepth and formed by flaps fastened to the back of the receptacle, bentforward at right angles to provide a fiat bottom for the compartmentsand then bent over to lie loosely one upon another, each flap in aseries projecting beyond the next overlying iiap.

2. A tile comprising a shallow receptacle containing a plurality oftiling-compartments arranged in series, said compartments being of equaldepth and formed by iaps fastened to the back of the receptacle andturned over to lie loosely one upon another, each flap in a seriesprojecting' beyond the next overlying flap, and partition-strips betweenthe fiaps of adjacent series, which, together with the sides of thereceptacle, form the sides of the compartments.

3. A lile comprising a receptacle containing a plurality of expansiblefiling-compartments arranged in series, said compartments being of equaldepth and formed by fiaps fastened at one end to the back of thereceptacle and turned over to lie loosely one upon another, each fiap ina series projecting beyond the next overlying fiap, and means forpressing the fiaps in each series upon the contents of the compartmentswithout obstructing the view of that portion of said contents whichprojects beyond the flaps.

4. A iile comprising a receptacle containing a plurality of expansibleoverlying compartments arranged in series'with each compartment in aseries projecting beyond the next, and a retaining-bar adapted to belaid over and press upon each series of compartments to hold thecontents therein without obstruction to the view thereof.

5. A tile comprising a receptacle containing a plurality of expansibleoverlying compartments arranged in series with each compartment in aseries projecting beyond the next, a hinged bail adapted to be thrownover or away from a series of the compartments,

IOO

IIO

and a spring whereb)7 thebail is held in either ol said positions. Y

(5. A lile comprising a receptacle eontainadapted to be held across theseries of fiaps,

and means for pressing said bar against the flaps.

7. A lile comprising' a receptacle Containing a plurality of expansibleoverlying oompartments arranged in series with a space between adjaeentseries, a retaining-bar for each series adapted to be swung over intosaid space, and a spring whereby said bar is held in either open orclosed position.

'8. A lile comprising a receptacle containing a plurality of overlyingeompartmen ts arranged in series with each Compartment in a seriesprojecting beyond the next, retainingbars each adapted to be laid overall the compartments in a series, and a spring to exert pressure uponeach bar when in Closed position.

In testimony whereof We have aiixed our signatures in presence of twowitnesses.

A. ELTON LANDON. WARREN E. BECK. Vitnesses to signature of A. EltonLandon:

PETER A. HART, WM. H. STOKER. Witnesses to signature of Varren E. Beek:

A.` M. BOVIER, A. H. MARKS.

